Anderson's Manitou Falls Camp Manitou Falls Camp what a dump Canada

I am hoping to correct one line that was in the rip-off report about Manitou Falls camp, and that is the the mess around the Lodge was caused by discruntled employees.  This article will explain what happened, and the true charactor of Micheal Anderson, the owner of Anderson's Manitou Falls camp.  Here goes:

In my opinion, Mike Anderson is a snake. He calls me up one day, asking if I would manage his camp for him. I am wheelchair bound due to MS and at the time,  my name had been forwarded to Mike through a mutual friend of ours, in Ear Falls, Ontario. Mike had gone through an ugly divorce, and is no longer allowed to enter Canada. Something to do with child abuse, and assault on his wife, I think. Anyway, he asked me if I would manage his camp for him. Being on a disability pension, I readily agreed. It was the end of the month, and I used, at his request, my pension check to buy camp supplies, he even gave me a shopping list to do that. He told me that the camp is in pretty good shape, just like he says in this add that there is good fishing and comfortable lodging. I would find housing in cabin #1. Food and lodging would be provided. My job would be one of directing the staff at the site.

I called my son, who was 19 years old, and asked him if he would be willing to accompany me to the new job, and being unemployed at the time, he eagerly agreed. Would my buddy my son's friend also be considered, he asked, and consulting with Mike, he too was accepted.

I loaded my van, loaded the supplies and filled up my van with gas...it would be a three and a half hour trip to the camp. Remember, I bought his camp supplies with my money, filled my van for his business and drove the three and a half hours to his camp entirely at my expense. On the way to the camp, we stopped at another camp to ask for directions. The owner of that camp told me that we should not expect to be paid by Mike, we didn't heed the warning, I did not think that my 'friend' would not do me like that.

The 'good shape' that the camp was in, by Mike's estimation, turned out to be a disaster area. There were four guests, staying in guest houses which had no water, no hot water, were mice infested. These guest were on holidays from the United States... they had traveled a long way to enjoy their vacation.

The camp had not been winterized by the manager of the previous year, and waterlines had frozen, causing them to brake below ground. When I arrived, the grounds, due to the constant flooding underground was completely water-saturated. When someone would walk on it, the sod would actually 'wave' like water would. For me to venture on the lawn, in my wheelchair was impossible.  My son found the supply pump and turned the water off. He founds some plastic lines, some tees and clamps, and crawling throught the water, he laid a network of water-supply tubing on top of the ground, so that the cabins would have water supply. We repaired some of the hot water tanks, but for some, there were no elements to replace the burned out ones. Hot water tanks need water in them to function.

The main lodge was sealed off, due to having to be treated for mold, another victim of not being winterized in sub-zero temperatures, broke the water lines in the lodge, and spraying against the walls, followed by warm weather, caused nasty molds and a poisonous and noxious atmosphere. The insurance company was already feeding the bill for clearing this mold.

There is no cell-phone service at the camp, and the only land line was in the lodge. If I wanted to communicate with Mike, which was an absolute necessity, I would have to drive the gravel road to Ear Falls, and with the deplorable state if affairs I found at the camp, I needed to speak with Mike. I had spend my pension check on his business, was now out of money, there was nothing at the camp that I could do, not without supplies that is. Mike was undisturbed by what I told him, he was worried about travel to and from the camp, though, because gas is expensive you know, he said. Now, remember, I use a wheelchair, a wheelchair does not do well on soggy ground. I had to travel on that soggy ground to get to cabin #1. There was some canned salmon, some cans of beans, but no bread, no eggs, no cereal., milk..really for all intends and purposes, no food to speak of. So Anderson got in contact with the only grocery store that he had dealt with in Ear Falls and asked the owner if we could charge our food at his store. The man grudgingly agreed. He certainly was not happy about that.  Soon the tank of my van was dry, and so, we filled it up at the camp gas pump. We had no choice, our money was spend on the camp, and there was no other way for us to get gasoline. Besides, whatever gas was used, was always on Manitou camp business. I made several more trips to the township of Ear Falls, we needed to get some heavy equipment to the camp, to get the docks which had been on dry land, into the water. The boats needed to get to the water. my son, my son's friend and I worked from daybreak to sundown. We had to repair the washing machine, the dryer the pump, in short, everything that was left the previous year with water standing in it had broken down. I needed money to purchase small items... The boys enjoyed a cigarette, and could not afford to buy any.... Mike gave us all a $300, advance on our pay in the form of a check. When we tried to cash the advance, the check bounced. (oh I should have listened to that other camp owners warning)

By now the boys grew restless, discouraged, and I was getting pretty much fed up with the whole situation. One morning, I got up, I told the boys that I had enough of this and that I had decided to return to my home in Kenora. “but Dad, what about us, we don't have transportation, your van is the only thing that gets us around.” The old truck wasn't fit for road use. I told the boys, that they could come home with me. That suggestion went to deaf ears. I recapped what we were up against: Mike said the camp was in good shape, which it certainly was not... the other camp owner had warned us that would would not see payment for our work, .. the one check that had been issued, bounced... we had worked from sunrise to sunset, could not communicate with Mike, and he was afraid that we spend to much money on groceries. How much more were they willing to endure???

They wanted to stay, hoping for pay in the end.

I told my son the he could drive me to Kenora, and he could use the van for a while. I'd try to manage without my van. (my van is handicapped hand controlled, has a wheelchair lift in it) I knew that once I got home, I would not have the means to feed myself, due to lack of money, which had been spend for cleaning supplies at the camp..

So my son drove back to the camp. By now the fuel tank was again near empty. I am not sure what happened at the camp while I was not there, but at some point, my son had enough also and decided to join me in Kenora, again. This was later in the day, and he needed some gas to make it the three + hour drive to Kenora. Ear Falls would not have any gas pumps open, so he had no choice but to use the camp's gasoline. Mike owed us a tank of gas for the trip to the camp anyway, right?

Because of that tank of gas, I mean the payback gas, there was a Canada-wide arrest warrant out for my son, courtesy of my buddy/pal/friend Mike Anderson. He was hauled to jail, banned from the camp, banned to be in Ear Falls, was not allowed to contact buddy Mike in any way, and was summoned to court in Red Lake. After spending some time in jail, he was released on his own recognizance. When he traveled to Red Lake, which is north of Ear Falls, he had to travel through Ear Falls. He was spotted in Ear Falls, hitch-hiking to Red Lake, and was promptly arrested again. This is what I got as a thank-you from buddy Mike. My son who helped his dad, who in turn acted on a request from Mike in an effort to help him keep his camp running.

I was never paid a penny for my efforts, not even the money that I had put out from my disability check. I spend two weeks without food, once at home in Kenora.  I ate through the benevolence of the church.  My son had a dream to join the Canadian Armed Forces, following in the footsteps of his older brother, only to find out that because of the fact that he had been charged, and found guilty in a court of law, he would not be able to join the forces anymore. His life's dream was taken away, because of a theft that was not even a theft. I tried to help a person, who I thought was my friend, I tried to help him while he was going through an ugly divorce, I was there for him after the Canadian Justice System banned him from Canada. I prayed for him when he was in trouble.

How does he repay me? He cheated me out of my disability check, he put me through an unimaginable challenge, and believe me, my life is a challenge just as it is from day to day. He screwed two young people out of wages owed them, and I don't know how many people more.

 So, it was NOT discruntled employees whom made the mess around the lodge, it was found just like that, when we arrived at the camp.  The whole inside of the lodge had been placed outside by a company hired by the insurance company, and it was less then needly done.

I am still praying for 'buddy' Mike, I pray that God gives him his just reward, and shows him the error of his ways. In Jesus' name I pray.

Amen!